In keeping with regulated noise control throughout the Carnival season, the Environment Management Authority (EMA) has rolled out an updated monitoring and enforcement strategy aimed at balancing cultural celebration and community wellbeing.
To mitigate noise pollution, Regional Coordinator – Permit, Monitoring and Complaints at the EMA, Christopher Ward, says event promoters are encouraged to register for a noise variation permit that allows deviations from the prescribed noise standards, particularly for events like parties or festivals.
“This is a process. So the process involves an application as well as getting feedback from persons who may be affected by such an event, so it’s a very interactive process. We want, through the process, for persons who may be affected to be aware, who the promoter is and also express their concern to EMA.”
Manager – Permitting at the EMA, Vidjaya Ramkhalawan, says the updated application process seeks to provide more information to the Authority and the surrounding residential communities regarding site plans, site layout, and speaker orientation.
“So if you have a community, for example, that is south of your event, you don’t want the speaker facing south of the event because they are going to receive that, so you’d want to orient it in a particular manner. So that’s where sound engineers, acoustic engineers come into play.”